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Underutilized or traditional leafy vegetables are grown in the wild and cultivated. They are consumed as nutritional accompaniments to staples, either raw (fresh), cooked, or in a dried form, through custom, habit, and tradition. These traditional leafy vegetables are natural rich sources of phytochemicals and nutritional compounds. Over time, the...
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... K was the primary determined macroelement ( Figure 1). The content of this element ranged from 61,204.68 mg kg −1 DW in SR fruits at ripening stage I to 23,201.74 mg kg −1 DW in SV fruits at ripening stage II. The data demonstrated that K tended to decrease at maturity and the highest contents of potassium were determined to be present in all species of unripe fruits. ...
... Other researchers say that in Solanum nigrum leaves, the content of Mg ranged from 100-200 mg 100 g −1 DW [22]. Sivakumar D et al., 2020, determined in fresh leaves of S. retroflexum 92 mg 100 g −1 DW [23]. Mg is a mineral that is abundant in vegetables and has been linked to important dietary roles in maintaining human health. ...
Studies on the mineral and vitamin C contents of different species and ripening stages of Solanum fruits are very limited. The aim of the research was to evaluate the content of the mineral elements and vitamin C of four different Solanum species (S. melanocerasum—SM, S. nigrum—SN, S. villosum—SV and S. retroflexum—SR), and three ripening stages. The mineral composition of Solanum fruits was detected using a CEM MARS 6® (Matthews, NC, USA) digestion system outfitted with a 100 mL Teflon vessel, by microwave-assisted extraction (MAE). In total, eleven mineral elements were detected (K, Ca, Mg, P, Fe, Na, Cu, B, Mn, Al, and Zn). Vitamin C content was assessed by a spectrophotometric method. Depending on the ripening stage/species, content of microelements ranged from 756.48 mg kg−1 DW in SV fruits at ripening stage III, to 211.12 mg kg−1 DW in SM fruits at ripening stage III. The dominant microelement was Fe. The total content of macroelements in Solanum fruits ranged from 26,104.95 mg kg−1 DW in SV fruits at ripening stage II to 67,035.23 mg kg−1 DW in SR fruits at ripening stage I. The dominant macroelement was K. The data from two experimental years showed that the significantly highest content of vitamin C was in SM fruits and ranged from 48.15 mg 100 g−1 at ripening stage I to 45.10 mg 100 g−1 at ripening stage III.
... Another study in South Africa reported that indigenous leafy vegetables were a good source of iron. A 100 g (Fresh weight, FW) portion of African nightshade S. retroflexum contained 7.2 mg of iron, whereas other traditionally southern African vegetables, such as C. tridens (wild jute), Amaranthus cruentus (pigweed), C. olitorius (Jew's mallow), V. unguiculata (cowpea), C. lanatus (tsamma melon leaves), C. gynandra (spider flower), Amaranthus hybridus (cockscomb), and Bidens pilosa (blackjack), contained 6.3, 5.1, 3.6, 4.7, 6.4, 2.1, 4.1, and 2.0 mg, respectively [85]. ...
Micronutrient deficiency affects all groups worldwide and is a major public health issue. It has devastating effects on all ages, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. It causes anemia, night blindness, increased mortality in children and pregnant women, osteoporosis in adults and rickets in children, lower infectious disease resistance, weariness, and cognitive impairment. Recent attention has focused on micronutrient deficits. Fortunately, these micronutrients are abundant in vegetables. Many African vegetables are endemic due to various weather variations. Diverse geographical areas on the continent allow for exotic and indigenous vegetable kinds. In Africa, many African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) are grown and eaten. Exotic veggies are popular in cities, but rural Africans still prefer indigenous crops. Despite their availability, most of the indigenous vegetables are underutilised and have not been adequately explored due to the decreased attention to their production, consumption and utilization. Due to their diversity, they have a great potential to contribute to food security by providing nutrient rich healthy diets. They are rich in vitamins and minerals and hence make a potential source of micronutrients that can help reduce the reported deficiencies. This paper provides a literature review on the wide variety of underappreciated vegetables grown in Africa, their health benefits, and their potential to alleviate micronutrient shortages. It also investigates the barriers to increasing consumption and explores some of the strategies that have been employed to address these problems. Due to their significant role in ensuring food and nutrition security, along with their rich nutrient composition, there exists an urgent imperative to enhance public awareness regarding their consumption and the attainment of nutritional security.
... World Health Organization recommends a minimum intake of 400 g of fruit and vegetables, or five portions, per day, excluding starchy tubers (WHO, 2020). Vegetables are generally high in water-soluble vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, and phytochemicals which aids in the prevention of communicable diseases by exhibiting multiple health benefits (Sivakumar et al., 2020;Swain and Ray, 2017). Consumption of vegetables has drastically reduced due to modernization and urbanization. ...
... In 1990, the World Health Organization recommended eating at least five servings (about 400 g) of fruit and vegetables per day to prevent cancer and other chronic diseases [7]. In addition, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) guidelines (2011) state that an individual should consume at least one cup (∼237 g) of raw or cooked vegetables or two cups of raw leafy vegetables per day [8]. Despite the importance of conventional vegetables in improving the nutritional and health status of populations, they still remain inaccessible to the middle class due to their high cost in developing countries, particularly in the Republic of Congo. ...
Generally overlooked by consumers, many local leafy vegetables in the Republic of Congo are considered to be part of the rural way of life and “poor man's food”. In order to promote their consumption, this study was carried out to assess the nutrient composition of four leafy vegetables (Amaranthus hybridus L, Basella alba, Solanum nigrum L and Ipomea batatas L). The leafy vegetables were collected from two markets and two market garden sites. The pH and the contents in moisture, protein, ash, lipids and minerals (Ca, P, Fe and Mg) were determined using standard analytical methods (Association of Official Analytical Chemists). The results indicate that the four leafy vegetables have a pH of between 6 ± 0.03 and 7 ± 0.04, high moisture content (81.43 ± 0.20 to 94.89 ± 0.12 g/100g FW), high protein content (21.95 ± 0.05 to 32.59 ± 0.07 g/100g FW) and high ash content (13.32 ± 0.05 to 25.78 ± 0.03 g/100g FW). All the vegetables were low in lipids (between 2.73 ± 0.23 and 4.81 ± 0.20 g/100gDW). The investigations also show that the four vegetables studied have high levels of phosphorus (389.27 ± 3.23% to 875.22 ± 3.16 mg/100 g DM), iron (70.29 ± 0.15 to 180.06 ± 1.21 mg/100 g DM), calcium (106.78 ± 3.25 to 3404.57 ± 8.07 mg/100 g DM) and magnesium (679.20 ± 2.25 to 2331.25 ± 3.26 mg/100 g DM). In addition, the vegetables collected at the market garden site of the municipal garden had the best a best Ca/P ratio (2.56 to 4.59). These findings suggest that these leafy vegetables represent a genuine alternative source of protein and especially micronutrients (iron, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium) for human nutrition, health and food safety.
... The retention of alkaloid was more evident in the extracts of H. sabdariffa calyx dried at 30 o C. Among phytochemicals in H. sabdariffa with biological and nutraceutical properties, tannin is reportedly lower in content [46]. Compared with the control, the tannin content decreased in all the extract samples. ...
We evaluated the antioxidant and neuroprotective potentials of extracts of Hibiscus sabdariffa calyx in Wistar albino male rats injected intraperitoneally with aluminium chloride at a dose of 7 mg/kg/day. Phytochemical screening of H. sabdariffa calyx show that coumarin glycosides and steroid were absent after drying at 50 oC. At 30 oC, there were significant (p < 0.05) highest amounts of phenols, flavonoids, alkaloids, tannin, and saponin. The extracts showed significantly (p < 0.05) high dose-dependent antioxidant activities. MDA significantly (p < 0.05) increased, while GSH, GPX, SOD, CAT activities significantly (p < 0.05) decreased in the brain of the experimental rats induced with AlCl3, while treatment with the extracts reversed these effects to a relatively normal level. At doses of 500 and 1000 mg/kg body weight, the extracts of the calyx dried at 30 oC exhibited the highest capacity to increase the activities of GSH and GPx. Also, AlCl3 caused significant increases (p < 0.05) in the percentage inhibition of acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase activities, and a significantly (p < 0.05) lower protein levels in the brain of the test rats, while treatment with the extracts, at low and high doses, significantly (p < 0.05) reversed these effects in the rat brain to near normal.H. sabdariffa exhibited a good potential to protect against oxidative stress and neurotoxicity.
... magnesium. Iodine, copper and selenium [2]. This situation constitutes a public health problem in the world and particularly in developing countries, resulting in high morbidity and mortality [3]. ...
... Their crucial role as indispensable ingredients in traditional sauces has been demonstrated through the success of the World Health Organization's (WHO) Global Fruit and Vegetable Initiative project [17]. Traditional leafy vegetables play a vital role in combatting hunger, food insecurity, and malnutrition and most are suitable for food intervention programs [2]. ...
The present study involved the biochemical characterization of four leafy vegetables (Basella alba. Hibiscus sabdariffa. Solanum macrocarpon and Lagenaria siceraria) selected and collected from two markets (Texaco and Thomas Sankara) and two market gardening sites (Jardins Talangaï and Nkombo) in the northern part of the city of Brazzaville, in Congo. The water content and pH of the selected leafy vegetables in the four sites were determined from the fresh material, while their protein, lipid, ash and mineral contents were established from the dry material using standard methods. The results reveal that the studied leafy vegetables have a very high-water content ranging from 84.49±0.36-94.63±0.68%, a pH ranging from 2.7±0.6 to 7.3±0.6, a lipid content ranging from 2.09±0.74 to 5.02±0.42%, a protein content within the range of 14.87±0.81% and 35.81±1.85%, and an ash content varying between 6.86±0.53 and 41.59±1.62%. Furthermore, these results show a high content of mineral elements, with values ranging from 3.94±0.95 to 83.57±3.7mg/100g, 920.01±0.45 to 4677.99±2.24mg/100, 101.25±1.02 to 372.80±1.56mg/100g, and 192.28±1.73 to 1452.57±4.71 mg/100g, respectively for iron, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium. In accordance to these results the studied leafy vegetables available and accessible, are rich sources of protein and micronutrients. Thus, their consumption in sufficient quantities could contribute to the improvement of nutritional status and an adequate protection against malnutrition-related diseases.
... This may be due to inadequate attention given by the product development industries and low level of research outputs; moreover media based advocacy is almost none for underutilized crops compared to processed foods (Adhikari et al. 2017). If GC is incorporated as one of staple food, it would, contribute massively and play significant role in mitigating macro and micronutrient deficiencies, contribute for eradication of poverty and hunger and maintaining food and nutrition security (Sivakumar et al. 2020;Tyagi et al. 2018). Further, improving agricultural sustainability and dietary diversity (Mayes et al. 2012), as mentioned above due to its high nutritional composition, ability to grow in a wide ecological zone throughout the world and the potential to enrich various functional foods; GC seed can maintain food and nutrition security. ...
Garden cress seed is a potential source of macro and micronutrients including essential fatty acids and amino acids as well as minerals such as iron, potassium, calcium and phosphorus. The seed also provides appreciable amount of health-protective bioactive compounds used to treat diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, bone fracture, asthma, constipation and some forms of cancer. Besides,, it is used to develop functional foods of therapeutic value in food manufacturing industries and traditional food preparations. Even though, it is known for its superior health benefits, provision of essential nutrients, and wider application in functional food development it is among the most underutilized crop in the world. Additionally, majority of studies conducted on garden cress seeds are mainly animal trials and hence needs to conduct studies on human. Therefore, the aim of this review paper is to provide up to date research evidence on the nutrient composition and therapeutic use of underutilized garden cress seeds and its functional food products, promising for the prevention of non-communicable and communicable diseases.
Graphical Abstract
... Boiling and stir-frying improve palatability and reduce antinutrients in nightshade, such as tannin, as opposed to the raw vegetable (Managa et al., 2020;Sivakumar et al., 2020). Cooking also eliminates risks of bacterial or fungal contamination while not reducing the anticancerogenic properties of nightshade (Odongo et al., 2018). ...
The reduction of post-harvest losses (PHLs) has been identified as a key pathway to food and nutrition security in sub-Saharan Africa. However, despite policy prioritisation, knowledge about the severity of PHLs remains scant, especially when it comes to nutrient-dense crops such as African nightshade and bush beans. Therefore, this paper identifies loss hotspots, causes and effects throughout the value chains of nightshade and bush beans in eastern Uganda. Primary data collected following the Informal Food Loss Assessment Method, combined with small-scale load tracking and secondary data, allows for an analysis of physical, economic, quality, and nutritional losses throughout the value chains of both crops. Results show that in the bush bean value chain, severe physical and quality losses occur during post-harvest handling by farmers, leading to high economic losses at this stage of the chain. Nutritional losses are not expected to be significant in the bush bean value chain. By contrast, due to the shortness of the nightshade value chain, where produce is moved from harvest to consumption within one or two days, physical losses in most parts of the chain are relatively minor. Only at consumption stage, high physical losses occur. This is also the stage where economic losses and potential nutritional losses are most pronounced. The results of this study offer a deeper understanding of the value chain dynamics of bush beans and nightshade, including underlying gender relations, and identify concrete loss hotspots, upon which further research and practical interventions can build.
... Consumption of traditional vegetables or plants can assist in the prevention of chronic disease development, as they contain various bioactive compounds that exhibit multiple health benefits (40). Using LC-MS-based metabolomics, the chemical compositions were analyzed (Figure 1), and 770 and 769 compounds were identified from SRO and SRT, respectively (Figure 2A). ...
Rhubarb plants (Rheum officinale and R. tanguticum) have edible stalks. In this work, we aimed to compare the nutritional properties, chemical compositions, and bioactivities of R. officinale (SRO) and R. tanguticum (SRT) stalks and to analyze the composition–function relationship. Results showed that the two stalks were good sources of fiber, as well as minerals. They contained abundant essential amino acids and essential fatty acids to regulate the immunity and prevent some chronic diseases; the contents of polyunsaturated fatty acids were 2,244.32 mg/100 g and 2,844.69 mg/100 g, respectively. The antioxidant activity were also proved. Metabolomics showed that SRO and SRT contained abundant phenolic acids. Due to the higher concentrations of flavones, SRT has better antiinflammatory activities than SRO by inhibiting NF-κB signaling pathway. Rhubarb stalks exhibited good safety in acute toxicity and cytotoxicity tests. This work indicated that the two stalks have nutritional value, safety, and bioactivities, and could be used as sources of nutritional ingredients for regulating the immunity of body in food industry.
Lactic fermentation is a traditional preservation method that has been pivotal in enhancing the safety and extending the shelf life of various food products particularly where other technologies are not affordable. The present review paper explores the role of lactic fermentation in African Indigenous vegetables, emphasizing its impact on food safety and shelf life extension. The paper systematically examines the biochemical mechanisms of lactic acid bacteria in suppressing pathogenic microorganisms and spoilage organisms, thereby improving the safety and shelf life of these vegetables. Additionally, it briefly addresses how lactic fermentation contributes to the nutritional and sensory qualities of Indigenous vegetables, which are crucial for their marketability. The review further delves into the economic implications of integrating lactic fermentation of African Indigenous vegetables practices into local agricultural and food systems, considering aspects such as cost‐effectiveness, market potential, and value addition of African Indigenous vegetables. By synthesizing the current research and practices, the paper highlights the dual benefits of lactic fermentation of African Indigenous vegetables in enhancing food security and creating economic opportunities in Africa. The findings suggest that leveraging traditional fermentation techniques could significantly bolster the shelf life, safety, and economic viability of African Indigenous vegetables, offering a sustainable approach to food preservation and economic development.
